The Better This NBA Star Plays This Season, The More Money He'll Donate

"The goal is to help kids be kids."

Andrew Wiggins is giving NBA fans a reason to root for him this season. The 23-year-old Minnesota Timberwolves player announced on Tuesday that he will be donating $22 for every point he scores this season to charity. Why 22? That's the number on his jersey.

The cause Wiggins has chosen to support is a special one. According to his Instagram announcement, the money he donates will go toward "supporting underprivileged children who face barriers in participating in organized sports." As Wiggins shared in the caption to his announcement, "The goal is to help kids be kids and play sports!"

It's unfortunately true that children from lower-income families often face obstacles to participating in sports. As The Atlanticreported last year, research has shown that kids whose family income is less than $25,000 per year are almost three times as likely as their peers from households over $100,000 to be "inactive" (playing no sports) during the year.

Wiggins also has a history of giving back to deserving students. The player, who is originally from Toronto, returned to his roots in 2016 to help renovate the Dufferin Clark Community Centre, where he grew up playing basketball. He and Adidas revealed updated facilities, with the brand also providing uniforms, shoes, and equipment for youth basketball.

Wiggins' promise to donate for each point this season could end up raising tens of thousands of dollars. As Yahoo Sports explains, Wiggins scored 1,452 points last season, which would add up to more than $31,000. If, however, he matches his performance from the previous season (scoring 1,933 points), that total would be more than $42,000.

No matter what he ends up scoring, we commend Wiggins for giving back, and can't wait to hear more about his donations.